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Chase slept the entire way back to our home, and stayed asleep as Jared carried him down through the tunnels, and set him on the softest cot we could find. They gave him some more sleep, and no pain, to prep him for surgery. I sat by his bed as they got things ready. I hoped to God that he would be alright, that his mind could still be his after they extracted the soul inside of him.
"Chase?" I whispered into the dark as we lay together on night, as he lay on the cot, his face blank as stone, I wished desperately to read his facial expressions as I had in the past. But his face was cold, hard, emotionless. He had never looked that way when he was sleeping before, but he hadn't been under drugs when he was sleeping.
"Yeah?"
I smiled, glad he was awake.
"What happens to you, after you become a soul? Would you still be able to thing?"
He shuffled onto his side, so that he was facing me, "I don't really know. Maybe you would be, maybe you wouldn't. It could depend on how strong you are."
"Then promise me that if you ever become a soul, you'll be the strongest." I scooted closer, until our bodies were pressed against each other.
"Only if you promise the same thing."
"I swear it."
"Then so do I." He leaned forward and kissed my forehead, easing my worries just enough so that I could fall asleep that night. I couldn't count the number of times that Chas had to talk me into going to sleep. I desperately wanted to stay awake and keep watch, I had to warn him if anything was coming. Sometimes he would let me fall asleep before him, so I could do it. And other nights, we switched. Because as brave as he tried to act, he, too, was scared. He didn't often show it, but I knew when he wasn't feeling good.
And as he lay on the cot, his face blank as stone, I wished desperately to read his facial expressions as I had in the past. But his face was cold, hard, emotionless. He had never looked that way when he was sleeping before, but he hadn't been under drugs when he was sleeping.
"Are you ready?" Doc asked me, and I smiled.
"You're not operating on me."
He smiled softly, "I know. Would you like to leave?"
I paused a moment, "No, I want to watch." Seeing a soul being taken out of the man I loved couldn't be awful, in fact, it could be enjoyable, except for the cutting the back of his neck part. I wanted to see that parasite removed. They took him, very carefully, to the operating table. Ian held the tank, and I took it from his hands.
"I'd like to hold it." I said.
He smiled softly, "You just press that down, he'll slip it in..." he gave me quick instructions, a five year old could have operated it. Chase was laid carefully face down on the cold operation table, a cloth under his neck to catch the blood. I was taking deep, yet shallow breaths as Doc approached him with the knife. I felt Ian's arm around my waist, and I rested my head on his shoulder, and closed my eyes just before Doc made the incision. I couldn't watch that, no matter how hard I tried. When I opened my eyes, there was a short but deep cut on Chase's neck, that was bleeding.
"You're bleeding!" I knelt next to Chase Hathaway, a boy one year older than me in school, who I thought was the cutest freshman there ever was. I had just watched him take a huge spill off his skateboard in front of my house, and had run over without thinking.
He stood up, looking at his raw forearm, "Yeah." He shrugged.
"Does it hurt?"
He laughed, "No."
"You should probably wash it out. Want to come inside?"
He looked me over quickly, then smirked, "Sure. Your house, you mean?"
I laughed, "Where else?"
I led him into my house and to the bathroom, where I gently got the dirt off his wound.
"Ouch!" he hissed as I pulled out a particularly large clump.
I smirked, "Thought it didn't hurt."
"It didn't until you did that!" He retaliated, his manhood offended.
I dabbed at it until it was clean, hating the sight of his blood, happy to help.
I couldn't help this time. All I could do was pray.
